OIL FUEL IN THE NAVY.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LI, Issue 60, 29 February 1908, Page 3

OIL FUEL IN THE NAVY.

llnW IT SAYK,S \YKfOIIT AND OlYi-S SI'KKD !N TIME OK ])AX<iKU. i'lir lact tiial the iiritnli destroy or Tartar. itTi'iitly built i>y .Uvssr. Thoi'uvn'isil, lias steamed tliirly-st'vuii kno.s km- a niu oi one niilu on licr ollici.il I rials willi turbine engines, driven i>v >iCciiu produml by oil fuel, calls altuulinn, -itys tlie Daily -Mail, to the greatly speed which obtained in the modem \Yiir<h ; p by tiding oil. All the new ocean-going class of <k'which the Tnitiir brUings, ] ill rn oil ill I itoi r furnaces a lid curry no co.ii. Tin: weight, tlms saved emililes t ln-ill tu run at ii prodigious speed. Tour ut' the class have already lic."i tried mid nil have done from 33 lo :j.i l knots on an ollieial vim of ,;ix hour-. under conditions which alt 1 [Helically tho-e of war and with a strictly limited consumption of nil.

T!h> iuivjinuu-v* of oil a* a fiu'l aro immiiu'ralilr, the only disadvantage from tin 1 llriti>h point oi' view I wing iliil lhere arr no oil-fields ill tin; I * rii i.-h Kle\. nii lliat in war our Navy .vnulil tia\p to irly fur its -u|»j>ly of Jim!j\i' fori-c u|iuii an imported |ii\»(lu<-t. 'i hj? liiVi ami gicati'sl advantage U liie elimination of Hie wa>u* weight in w.i 1. t'oal wlirn it is burnt li-aves a <i'itain amount of a-ii and clink!.'!", wlik-li \u-ight. and uiiii'li lias from linn l lo lime to br reiu;ivo.l from tin- stokolmld. With u\\ ilks'o is no Midi was to material iliat Ins 10 lie rcniuxi*d.

A second jiuini is liie reduction of labor wiLli nil mc!. tcwer stokers an' needed, lor nil thai is required is lo (urn on tin.' valve which sprays the oil mi tin' furnaces.

Thinlly, oil mn Im |,imi|n',l from ship in ship, anil thus be easily t rnnslerri."l at sea in any lint rough Heather, whereas coaling at sra is eurcmoiv diflicilt anil dangerous in anything Init'a perfect calm.

The oiio disadvantage m' oil is tliaL it lines Hut oiler 'inv resistance to a proji'rlik'. Coal, when the hunkers are Cull, will pro!eel tlii' ship's vitals, and this oil fuel iH'\vr i-au do.

<lil fuel is alone burnt in nil the thirty-six new torpedo hunts which have recently twen built, or which are now building, tor tin' British Xavy. In Ilic,c vi-sels it gives excellent results. In larger ships il has been slowly introduced during the pa-l eight years, ami all modem liattlcsliips and armored cruiser., carry a supply of oil. in adii(i"U to coal.

The oil is itsitaly conveyed in the di.'iible-botloins of the ships, though then' is some risk from (ire should"® ship run aground and have her doiibleliottoins pierced., lis ill that case the oil might lie carried up to the furnaces in Imilei ' "liicli happened hi the (iernian battleship I'rederich 111. I he Dreadnouglit carrii's several liuiiilred tons of nil fuel, and all tin- Kijw '•''"aril class of battleships .|lln i'l'iece. while the large new armored cruisers have Ir.ini 4011 l„ run tons r-1. li.

It it is desired suddenly lo increase 1 in one of these battleships or eruisoi-s the oil fuel i, bronglit into play ;l| al sprayed on the furnaces Ihrou-ii special burner-. In the manoeuvres of 1 .111(1 I lie King I'.dw ard class of had 1 .- "'"I ls «t "nee drew away from their liur-iK'is when they turned mi ihcir nil fuel. 11l the S.I n,,. ma Illicit n\'s the big cruiser Duke of Edinburgh turned on her oil jets aml made a speed of 2:1 knots aiMinsl a head sen, The smoke whi.-ii sii" made »as dense, hul there was no nnstakiii'i the alnui-t miraculous ellect "I M.e oil. Tank, for the storage of oil are now '"•"I" in -I a lied al all iiuimrlant Tlritish iw al liases, and there i- everv indic.,i"'" t ii'' I in the neur future nil will he mo' ' .'ll,l move useil. ami will gradiiiillv "Ui.i.l.in! coal a, the main fuel for varsllir-.